A story of a mighty kingdom that has totally been forgotten. Nagas were a group of people who migrated to a number of places in North India around 1000 BC. Some coins dating back to the 2nd and 3rd century BC have been found in the ruins of Padmavati. It seems that some of them settled as far as Nagaland in northeast and Andhra in the south, though their main settlement remained in central India. After being almost completely destroyed by Janamejaya of the Kuru dynasty (1200-500 BC), the Naga dynasty rose to rule parts of north-central India during the 3rd and the 4th centuries AD, after the decline of the Kushan Empire and before the rise of the Gupta Empire.
Its capital was located at Padmavati, which is identified with modern Pawaya (in Gwalior District), in Madhya Pradesh.
According to the Puranic texts as well as numismatic evidence, the Nagas also ruled at Videsha, Kantipuri and Mathura. They may have been different branches of a single family or may have been a single family that ruled from different capitals at different times. In Madhya Pradesh, Naga coins have been discovered at Pawaya, Narwar, Gohad, Vidisha, Kutwar and Ujjain. In Uttar Pradesh they have been discovered in Mathura and Jhansi districts.
The oldest inscriptional history is seen on the carvings of the pedestal of Yaksha. The inscription is in Brahmi.
Yaksha Manibhadra found at Padmavati, now at Archeology Museum, Gwalior
The Naga dynasty is known mainly from the coins issued by its rulers, and from brief mentions in literary texts and inscriptions. According to the Vayu and the Brahmnada Puranas, nine Naga kings ruled Padmavati and seven Naga kings ruled Mathura before the Guptas. According to the Vishnu Purana, nine Naga kings ruled at Padmavati, Kantipuri and Mathura. However, coins of twelve kings have been discovered, of eleven rulers at Padmavati (modern Pawaya) and of one ruler at Narwar. The Naga people worshipped the Cobra (Nag).
The inscriptions of the Vakataka dynasty, state the mother of Vakataka King Rudrasena was a daughter of King Bhavanaga. Bhavanaga's coins have been found at Padmavati. Rudrasena's reign is dated to 335-355 AD, therefore his maternal grandfather Bhavanaga can be dated to early 4th century AD. The Allahabad Pillar inscriptions of Samudragupta mentions Ganapati Naga as one of the kings defeated by him. A chronological list of Naga rulers, based on numismatic and paleographic evidence exists today.
Ganapati was the last Naga king. The Naga dynasty came to an end about the middle of the 4th century AD and their kingdom became part of the Gupta Empire. However, Padmavati was still the capital of a kingdom and a place of cultural and religious importance in the 8th century AD. It had perhaps a university that attracted students from distant provinces like Vidarbha (modern Berar). Buddhists lived here with followers of the Saivite sect of the Kapalikas.
Coins. The Padmavati region started yielding coins in the 1800s when heavy rains started to erode the high level of mud. Villagers started finding coins each year after the rains and still find them till date. One hoard of coins discovered in Padmavati contained as many as 100,000 coins in an earthen pot. Naga coins are mostly copper and circular, about one cm in diameter. Humped bull was a common theme. One can also see wheel, Linga, horse, triangular banner, peacock on the coins. The various kings of the Nagas minted coins in denominations of 1/8, 1/4, 1/2 and 1 Kakini..
1/8 Kakani, Ganapati Naga, 200-300 AD, copper, weight 0.45 gm, Obverse: Humped bull standing left, Reverse: Legend in Brahmi, lettering ''Maharaja Sri Ganendra''
1/4 Kakini, Naga, Narwar, 200-300 AD, copper, weight 1.1 gm, Dia 9,8 mm, Thickness 2.4 mm
Narwar, One Kakini, 200-340 AD, Bronze, weight 1.9 gm, Dia 10 mm, Thickness 3.6 mm.
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